Sojourners - Campaign Financehttp://www.sojo.net/taxonomy/term/470/0
enMoneyed Speechhttp://www.sojo.net/magazine/2014/06/moneyed-speech
<p>The Supreme Court continues to dismantle campaign finance reform.</p><p><a href="http://www.sojo.net/magazine/2014/06/moneyed-speech" target="_blank">read more</a></p>CampaignCampaign FinanceCorruptionDemocracyElectionsMoneyRacial and Social JusticereformspeechSupreme CourtFaith and PoliticsCommentaryFri, 09 May 2014 18:11:10 +0000Nick Penniman54121 at http://www.sojo.netThe Prerequisite of the Common Goodhttp://www.sojo.net/blogs/2012/11/08/prerequisite-common-good
<p class="p1">The day after the 2012 election brought a great feeling of relief. Most of us, whether our candidates won or lost, were so weary of what elections have become that we were just glad the process was over. Many were disappointed that dysfunctional and bitterly partisan politics in Washington, D.C., had undermined their deep desires for “hope” and “change.” Politics has severely constrained those possibilities by focusing on blame instead of solutions, and winning instead of governing. And, as the most expensive election in American history just showed, the checks have replaced all the balances.&nbsp;</p><p class="p1">But the election results produced neither the salvation nor the damnation of the country, as some of the pundits on both sides seemed to suggest.&nbsp;</p><p class="p1">The results of the presidential election showed how dramatically a very diverse America is changing; people are longing for a vision of the common good that includes everyone. As one commentator put it “the demographic time bomb” has now been set off in American politics — and getting mostly white, male, and older voters is no longer enough to win elections, as the Romney campaign learned on Tuesday.</p><p><a href="http://www.sojo.net/blogs/2012/11/08/prerequisite-common-good" target="_blank">read more</a></p>2012 electionCampaign FinancecampaignsCommon goodelection 2012God's PoliticsPoliticsRacial and Social JusticeThe Common GoodFaith and PoliticsThu, 08 Nov 2012 16:08:49 +0000Jim Wallis45019 at http://www.sojo.netMoney Unlimitedhttp://www.sojo.net/blogs/2012/05/31/money-unlimited
<p>A good history in <em>The New Yorker </em>of attempts at regulating campaign finance leading to the <em><a href="http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2012/05/21/120521fa_fact_toobin">Citizens United</a> </em>case before the Supreme Court and how Chief Justice Roberts orchestrated the decision:</p><p><em>"The decision followed a lengthy and bitter behind-the-scenes struggle among the Justices that produced both secret unpublished opinions and a rare reargument of a case. The case, too, reflects the aggressive conservative judicial activism of the Roberts Court. It was once liberals who were associated with using the courts to overturn the work of the democratically elected branches of government, but the current Court has matched contempt for Congress with a disdain for many of the Court’s own precedents."</em></p><p>Last evening, retired Justice John Paul Stevens, who led the dissent in the case, commented on it in a speech at the University of Arkansas. Asking why those with the most money are permitted to dominate the airwaves, <a href="http://www.mcclatchydc.com/2012/05/30/150623/retired-justice-stevens-obama.html">he said</a>:</p><p><em>"During the televised debates among the Republican candidates for the presidency, the moderators made an effort to allow each speaker an equal opportunity to express his or her views. Both the candidates and the audience would surely have thought the value of the debate to have suffered if the moderator had allocated the time on the basis of the speakers' wealth, or it they had held an auction allowing the most time to the highest bidder."</em></p><p>Yet thanks to the Court, that is essentially what we have in this election. &nbsp;</p><p><a href="http://www.sojo.net/blogs/2012/05/31/money-unlimited" target="_blank">read more</a></p>Campaign Financecitizens unitedRacial and Social JusticeEconomic JusticeQuick ReadThu, 31 May 2012 14:55:23 +0000Duane Shank38904 at http://www.sojo.netMurray Hill for Congress!http://www.sojo.net/magazine/2010/05/murray-hill-congress
Good news: Now corporations can buy democracy direct at huge discounts!<p><a href="http://www.sojo.net/magazine/2010/05/murray-hill-congress" target="_blank">read more</a></p>Campaign FinanceLobbyingSupreme CourtCommentarySat, 01 May 2010 14:00:00 +0000Ryan Rodrick Beiler20722 at http://www.sojo.net